Hot steering column
Thread Starter
8th Gear
Joined: Jun 2019
Posts: 8
Likes: 0
From: New Hampshire
Hot steering column
I have a 71 coupe (454/4sp/AC). I have wrapped the exhaust pipes, added the shutoff to the hose going to the heater box, installed Dynamat, Reflectix and new carpet with jute backing - all in an effort to deal with the common problem of heat entering the cabin. After all of this, with moderate positive effects, I have noticed the steering column is extremely hot. Has anyone else noticed this issue and does anyone have a fix?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jul 2010
Posts: 3,176
Likes: 633
From: perth western australia
I just pulled apart a 74 and a 77 column and they both had a sponge rubber seal up in the main tube , about where the firewall would be , both were stuck to the tube. They would keep any hot air from travelling up into the cabin. Big job to check yours out though. !!
Advanced
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 80
Likes: 2
From: near Nuremberg Bavaria
Yes, and No.
I have a '70 BB w/ A/T and standard steering column (non T/T), and after a while of driving the part of the column that protrudes into the cabin gets quite warm too. Especially in the summer. Just as a spoon gets warm at the handle when you stick it into hot soup, throught heat conduction, the column will transfer quite a good amount of engine bay heat. It's a more or less solid piece of metal pipe after all.
.
I have a '70 BB w/ A/T and standard steering column (non T/T), and after a while of driving the part of the column that protrudes into the cabin gets quite warm too. Especially in the summer. Just as a spoon gets warm at the handle when you stick it into hot soup, throught heat conduction, the column will transfer quite a good amount of engine bay heat. It's a more or less solid piece of metal pipe after all.
.
Last edited by QuRace; Aug 1, 2019 at 03:06 AM.
Is my vette stock?? HAHA
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 20,117
Likes: 9,247
From: Im not allowed to tell you
2020 C3 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2020 Corvette of the Year Finalist (performance mods)
2019 C3 of Year Winner (performance mods)
2016 C3 of Year Finalist
Do you have headers?
Drifting
Joined: Oct 2006
Posts: 1,875
Likes: 779
From: Persona Non Grata
2022 C3 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
Racer
Joined: Oct 2015
Posts: 414
Likes: 407
From: Meadville Pennsylvania
I think bazza77 is on the right track. I had the same problem with my 70 Dodge. The Dart has 2 of those foam shaft seals and the inner one had disintegrated and fallen out. As a temporary repair I took a piece of 1/2 " water pipe insulation, cut it to the correct size and pushed it between the shaft and support tube from the outside. This stopped all the hot air from the engine bay from traveling up the tube and heating the interior column. In the mean time I have ordered all the new parts I need to rebuild the complete column this winter.
Jerry
Jerry
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvette Engines RANKED by Peak Torque (70+ Years of Muscle!)
Joe Kucinski
Corvette ZR1X Will Be Pacing the Indy 500, And Could Probably Race, Too!
Verdad Gallardo
Top 10 Corvettes Coming to Mecum Indy 2026!
Brett Foote
Top 10 C9 Corvette MUST-HAVES to Fix These C8 Generation Flaws!
Michael S. Palmer
10 Revolutionary 'Corvette Firsts' Most People Don't Know
Joe Kucinski
5 Reasons to Upgrade to an LS6-Powered Corvette; 5 Reasons to Stay LT2
Michael S. Palmer
2027 Corvette vs The World: Every C8 vs Its Closest Competitor
Joe Kucinski